A blog about genealogy and thoughts about the various roots and branches of my family tree as well as the times in which my ancestors lived.Included are the West, White,and McFarland families.WARNING:DO NOT TAKE ALL OF MY FAMILY RECORDS AS GOSPEL. ALWAYS CONFIRM YOUR OWN RESEARCH!

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Monday, July 31, 2017

Daniel Steele Durrie writes about my ancestor Nicholas Holt's family. Some of this eithercontradicts what I thought I knew and some is brand new. I'll discuss that in a following post:

Nicholas Holt was married in England, a few years before he came to Massachusetts. The Christiau name of his first wife was Elizabeth, of whom nothing further is known than that she died at Andover, Nov. 9, 1650. He married second, June 20, 1658, Hannah, widow of Daniel Rolfe, aud daughter of Humphrey Bradstreet. She died June 20, 1665, at Andover.He married third Mrs. Martha Preston, May 21, 1000. She died March 21, 1703, aged 80 years.Nicholas Holt lived to a good old age, aud died at Andover, January 30, 1685, aged 83 years. He had the privilege of seeing his family grow up to manhood and womanhood. Of his ten children, eight were married and had families, one died before one - year of age, and one probably died unmarried. As the infirmities of age came upon him he distributed his property to his children, and they agreed to provide for his comfortable maintenance as well as his wife if she survived him. There is no will on record. in early life he probably carried on the business of a tanner, as that calling is attached to his name on the ship roll. While in the prime of life, he was engaged in agricultural pursuits; a few years before his death, in dividing his property among his children, he styles himself "Dishturner," probably a manufacturer of woodenware.CItildren of Nicholas1 (1) Holt and first wife Elizabeth.2. 1. Hannah2 (12) prob. eldest child b. in England and came with her parents to Mass. She m. March 8, 1669, Robert Gray then of Salem, Mass., who d. at Andover 1718, aged 80. In 1660, he was fined for attending a Quaker meeting. His father-in-law, March 10, 1680, deeded him lands in Andover, at which time he was a resident of that place. His children were born in Salem and recorded there. 4 ch.3. 2. Elizabeth2 (16) b. at Newbury, Mass., march 30, 1036; m. by Rev. Simeon Bradstreet, Oct. 26, 1658, Ralph Farnum of Andover. She d. at Andover, Aug. 26, 1683, aged 47. He d. at Andover, Jan. 8, 1692. 7 ch.4. 3. Mary2 (23) b. at Newbury, Oct. 6, 1638; m. at Andover, July 5, 1657, Thomas Johnson. She d. at Andover, Nov. 15,1700. He d. same place, 1719, aged 88. 6 ch.5. 4. Samuel2 (29) b. at Newbury, Oct. 6, 1641. He m. Sarah Allen her name, and date of m. not recorded. He d. at Andover, Nov. 7, 1703, aged 62. She d. at same place, April 3, 1716, aged 70. His father by deed, dated June 16, 1682, deeded him one-half of his sixty acres of upland, on which his house then stood; one hundred and thirty acres of his great division; one-half of his meadow called Ladle meadow, and various small pieces. In consideration of which, he was to pay fifteen shillings to the town and church yearly, as a part of his rate to the ministry, and twenty shillings a year to him, the said Nicholas, for his maintenance. Samuel and wife were members of the Congregational church in 1686. He was made a freeman, 1691. 2 ch. ,6. 5. Henry2 (31) b.in Andover, 1644; m.Feb. 24,1669, Sarah, daughter of William Ballard. She d. at Andover, Nov. 25, 1733. He d. Jan. 17, 1719, aged 75. They united with the Andover church, June 3, 1716. He was a prominent man in the town, and his name is frequently found on committees. In 1686, he received permission to erect a mill on Ladle brook. His father deeded him a portion of his estate, 1681. 14 ch.7. 6. Nicholas2 jr, (45) b. at Andover, 1647; m. Jan. 8, 1679, Mary probably dau. of Robert Russell. He d. at Andover, Oct. 8, 1715, aged 68. His wife d. April 1, 1717. Sept. 9, 1684, his father deeded him "one-third of the farm where he now dwells," also several parcels of land, also his dwelling house with "ye cellar rooms and Leantowe, and other convenience of house room adjoining." -In consideration of which Nicholas jr. agrees to fulfill certain conditions, and to provide for his father until death, and afterwards to pay a certain sum to his mother-in-law. 11 ch.8. 7. James2 (56) b. at Andover, 1651; m. Oct. 12, 1675, Hannah Allen, who d. Sept. 30, 1698. He d. Dec. 13, 1690,-aged 39 of Small Pox, on which day his youngest child d. of same disease. Himself and wife united with the Andover church 1686 (North Parish). lie received from his father, April 15, 1681, by deed, a portion of his estate. He left no will. His property was appraised at £230:10. 7 ch.9. 8. Priscilla2 b. at Andover June 20, 1653; d. Oct. 16, 1653, aged 4 months.Children of Nicholas Holt (1) hij second wife Hannah.10. 9. Rebecca2 b. at Andover, Nov. 14, 1662. No further information is found on the records. She probably died young.11. 10. Johns (63) b. at Andover Jan. 14, 1003—4; m. July 3, 1685, Sarah Geerey. He d. March 10, 1687, aged 24. His widow m. 2d, Nov. 2, 1687, John Preston. He received from his father, June 19, 1685, a portion of his father's estate. 2 ch.-pp11-13

A few things about my previous post about Thomas Johnson being charged and convicted
of selling liquor to the Indians:

One of the things that struck me reading the court files was how Nicholas Holt referred
to Thomas Johnson as his son-in law. It was common back in Puritan New England to refer
to in-laws as son, daughter, father, or mother to show you considered them as close to you
as your own parents or children by blood. So I think by using the term"son -in-law" Nicholas
is trying to show his displeasure with Thomas Johnson and distance himself from his actions.
Conversely, Thomas' father John Johnson refers to Mary (Holt) Johnson as "his daughter".
Was
their a break between Nicholas Holt and his daughter Mary over the
actions of her husband? Sometimes I wish there was a way to go back in
time to question the people in
these storie to get their thoughts and opinions of each other.

Another thought I had was about the people involved in the case. It may have been a sign
of changes in Andover, Ma. where they all lived. Here's a list of the original settlers of
Andover. The ones with an asterisk after their names are my ancestors or relatives, the
names in red were witnesses in the case:

Nicholas
Holt, Willam Ballard, John Lovejoy and Thomas Chandler are all my 9x
great grandfathers. Thomas Johnson was someone who came to Andover
after the original
settlers.One can only speculate if my ancestors regarded such activities as selling
liquor to the local Indians as a sign that Andover was straying from the Christian
principles of its beginnings.

((A story involving my ancestor Nicholas Holt and his family, First posted in Oct.2015))

Yet another Essex County, Massachusetts court case involving my ancestors and their
relatives. This one concerns my 9x great grandfather Nicholas Holt, his daughter Mary,
and her husband Thomas Johnson, all of Andover, Ma. Among the witnesses are my
ancestors Thomas Chandler, William Ballard, and John Lovejoy

Court held at Ipswich, Apr.18, 1671 Thomas
Johnson, presented by the grand jury upon a common fame for selling
strong waters to the Indians, pleading not guilty and putting himself
upon trial by jury, whether he did sell or no. He was found guilty of
selling two quarts to the Indians, and was sentenced to pay 8li. for
selling. Also fined for perjury, bound to good behavior and disabled for
giving evidence. John Perly and Edmond Bridges, jr., sureties.*

*Nicholas
Holt, aged about sixty-three years, deposed that sometime in October or
November last, hearing of a rumor in the town that his son-in-law
Thomas Johnson had sold strong liquors to the Indians and had taken an
oath to clear himself, he went to his house to speak with him about it,
but he not being at home, deponent discoursed with his wife about it. He
told her that he heard her husband carried bottles of liquor to the
Indians. She replied that there was a great deal more made of it than
there was cause, and that she knew of only two or three quarts that he
sold them. Sworn, 11:2:1671, before Simon Bradstreete.t

Ens. Tho.
Chandler, aged about forty-three years, deposed that about the time
that Thomas Johnson was at Cambridge about his selling strong water to
the Indians, deponent was speaking with John Johnson, father of said
Thomas, who told him about what Thomas's wife Mary said. Also that
Thomas told deponent that he carried up two bottles to the Indians, and
that there was nothing in them, but he carried a bottle of liquor in his
pocket and gave the Indians a dram and they gave him another. Sworn,
11:2:1671, before Simon Bradstreete,* assistant.

Jos. Ballard,
aged about twenty-six years, deposed that if he gave a dram or two to
the Indians, what was that to any man? Sworn, 12 :2 : 1671, before Simon
Bradstreete.*

Joseph Wilson, aged about twenty-six years,
deposed that some time the last harvest, he sold two bottles to some
Indians whose names he knows not, which bottles they left at Thomas
Johnson's. Some time after, deponent went to borrow a bottle of said
Johnson, who lent him one of those bottles. He also gave deponent
another "which his brother made to bring him some strong liquors from
Ipswich, whither hee was goeing but getting noe liquors there, hee left
one of the sd bottles wth his brother for his owne use, & there
it remaines still for ought hee knowes the other hee sold to yong Tho.
Burage att his returne Tho. Johnson was pvoked & angry that hee
brought him no liqrs & sd hee should not haue had his horse but
vpon yt acct the next day as hee thinks it was the said Johnson came to
him to borrow a bottle & sd hee was in great want of it
& must haue some, soe not haueing one of his owne hee lett him
haue one of his Fathr Loveioyes & wth wch & another hee
went to Newbury as hee sd to fetch liquors the next day hee mett him
comeing home not farr from his shopp & being something in a sack
behinde him knocked on the head of a bottle, wch hee pceiued was full
& further sayeth yl one of the bottles found wth the Ind.
& now brought to Andour is yt bottle w*h hee sent him." Sworn,
12 :2 :1671, before Simon Bradstreete,* assistant.

John Lovejoy,
aged about forty-nine years, deposed that the said Johnson being very
angry that he had brought him no liquors from Ipswich said it would be
40s. out of his way for they stayed for it, "cliping his words as it
were in yl speech," etc. Sworn, 12 :2 : 1671, before Simon Bradstreet.*

Willm.
Ballard, aged about fifty years, deposed that being at Mr. Hinchman's
and discoursing about Tho. Johnson, said Hinchman said he did not
question that he sold to the Indians, and sat upon and delivered to this
deponent a bottle which he said he had from the Indians to see whether
it would be owned at Andover. As yet he had found no owner, etc. Sworn,
12: 2 : 1671, before Simon Bradstreete.*John Johnson,
aged sixty-seven years, deposed that he never heard his daughter Mary
Johnson say that her husband sold to the Indians, etc.pp370-372

Continuing on with the sncestors of Zerviah (Abbott)Ellingwood, we come to my immigrant ancestor and 9x great grandfather Nicholas Holt. I found quite a bit about him in a Holt family genealogy so this will be two posts. Here's what author Daniel Steele Durrie wrote about Nicholas:

Nicholas Holt was one of the first settlers of Newbury and Andover in the county of Essex, state of Massachusetts. Neither the exact time nor the place of his birth is known. From the record of his death it appears he was born in the year 1602.The first definite information we have respecting: him, is as a passenger in the ship James of London, William Cooper, master, which sailed from the port of Southampton, Eng., in and about the sixth day of April, 1635, and of his arrival at Boston, in Massachusetts, on the third of June following, after a voyage of fifty-eight days. The names of fifty-three male persons are found as passengers on the ship roll, "besides the wives and children of dyvers of them." Among the former occurs the name of Nicholas Holt of Romsey, tanner. He was undoubtedly accompanied by his family, which consisted of a wife, and at least one child. He proceeded the same year to Newbury, and resided there for the period of ten years.In the volume of the Proprietors' Records of that town as one of the grantees, his allotment's of lands are thus desecibed: "A house lot of four acres be it more or less, bounded by High street on the South, Mr. [Edward] Rawson on the North, Archelaus Woodman on the West, and James Brown on the East. Also, a field lott forty acres, be it more' or less, over the little river, bounded by Nicholas Noyes on the South, the little river on the North and East, and Abraham Tappan on the West. Another field lot of thirty acres, be it more or less of upland and meadow, bounded by a great creek on the South, Henry Rolf on the North, the little river on the West, and the way, on the East." The present location of the first two grants of land, and the exact date when they were granted, can not now be ascertained. The last lot of meadow and upland was granted in 1641, and afterwards became the property of William Trotter, and from him deeded to Nicholas Wallington, and from him to John Woloott, and is now owned by Tristram Little, and is called Holt's Neck.The first book of church records of Newbury, prior to 1674, is lost, and consequently his name is not found; though there is no possible doubt of his being a member of the church at that place.In 1637, his name appears, as one of ten persons who in order to vote to prevent the re-election of Sir Henry Vane as governor, and to strengthen the friends of Gov. Winthrop, went from Newbury to Cambridge on foot (40 miles),qualified themselves to vote by taking the freeman's oath on the 17th of May, 1637- Winthrop was chosen governor, and Sir Henry Vane and his friends were in a minority.His name further appears on the Newbury records: Feb. 24,1038, when it was voted that Nicholas Holt and five others should be fined two shillings and six pence a piece for being absent from town meeting, having "due and fitt warning." And on the 21st of April following, he was fined the same amount for the same cause.While residing at Newbury his children, Elizabeth, -Mary, and Samuel were born.In 1644, Nicholas Holt removed with his family to Andover, and was one of the original settlers of that place. On a leaf in the town records, containing the list of householders in order as they came, his name is the sixth. He was one of the ten male members including the pastor elect that composed the church, at the ordination of Mr. John Woodbridge, Oct. 24, 1645.As the early records of the town were destroyed by the Indians, with the exception of a few fragments, it is difficult at this date to ascertain definitely the allotments of lands to him, by the proprietors. In 1656, there is a memorandum " to enter grants of land in a new book, y old being rent and in many places defective and some grants lost." In 1714, the proprietors made their report separate from those of the town, and in them is to be found many records of land sales to the Holts in small lots.As near as can be ascertained, he had a house lot of 15 acres, 100 acres of meadow land, and 300 acres, on what was known as the Stony Plain. A portion of this laud still remains in the family. The exact spot where his homesead was situated is not definitely known. The following notices of him, are taken from the Records of Massachusetts.'"May 26, 1647, he was appointed in connection with Sergeant Marshall to lay out the way from Reading to Andover, and with Lieut. Sprague and Sergeant Marshall to view the river, and make return to the court of the necessity and charge of a bridge, and make return to the next session of this court." !! At a general Court held May 27, 1652, he was appointed with Capt. Johnson of Woburu, and Thomas Hanforth of Cambridge, to lay out the bounds of Andover." And May 18, 1653, he was appointed with Capt. Richard Walker, and Lieut. Thomas Marshall, to lay out the highway betwixt Andover aud Reading, and at the next term of court, Sept. 10, 1653, the committee made a report of said Survey. -pp9-11

Sunday, July 30, 2017

For years I and other West family members had been trying to breakdown a brickwall and solve the mystery of John Cutter West's parentage. I'd taken a y-DNA test four years ago in hopes it would help me find an answer but that hadn't worked. Now I tried the Ancestry autosomal DNA test, and suddenlly that brick wall finally came down.

This is how it happened,

I found I had a DNA connection with a descendant of my great gransduncle John Cuvier West and in the course of our messaging back & forth Paula mentioned she had information that traced our ancestry back to Francis West and Margery Reve of Duxbury,Ma. She offered to mail me a photocopy of it along with a copy of another relative's Mayflower Society application which traced our lineage down from Richard Warren.

Of course I said yes and thanked her for her help.

A few days later a manilla envelope arrived in the mail with both documents. The West research is 16 pages long, most of it citations. And to my surprise, I found I had seen the information before. It was a line that said John Cutter West was the son of Paul West & Hannah Crowell of Liverpool, Nova Scotia. My sister Cheryl and cousin Yvonne Ball told me about the Paul West connection but I had been skeptical because of the discrepancy in birthplaces and also because my y-DNA test years ago hadn't put me in a haplogroup that showed descent from Francis West. But here was 16 pages of research and citations done by Frank Osgood, husband of West cousin Virginia (Thayer) Osgood.

I decided that John Cutter West may have lied for some reason when he gave his birthplace as Plymouth, Ma. on his marriage certificate. I also decided to enter the information on my Ancestry tree and see if any new DNA matches were made with it. This is what the new West line from Francis West down to my father looks like.

The next day I checked the Shared Ancestor Hints on my DNA Resukts Page, and there it was: a match with a descendant of Thomas West and Sarah Hamilton,who I now know to be my 5x great grandparents.

The brickwall is down. The Elusive John Cutter West is no longer elusive.

Thanks to Cousin Paula( whose last name I don't know because I threw out the envelope), Virginia (Thayer)Osgood) and Frank Osgood..

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Friday, July 28, 2017

My 9x great grandfather Ralph Farnham Jr was born in England in 1633 and came to Massachusetts with his parents on the James in 1635.The family eventually moved to Andover where Ralph Jr. married his wife Elizabeth Holt, daughter of Nicholas Holt and Elizabeth Short. Apparently the two families had been fellow passengers on the James.

Ralph Jr and Elizabeth had ten children, all born at Andover. Ma. Four married Holt cousins:

Wednesday, July 26, 2017

So a little over a week ago I got my Ancestry DNA test results back and started exploring them. Some things have changed since then:

The number of matches who are 4th cousins or closer has gone up ten to 459.

Today Ancestry introduced me to my Genetic Circles, which are made up of those people who share a specific ancestor with me. More on that in another post.

But last week I started going through my DNA matches, starting with the three closest cousins on the list. One I was pretty sure was from my Mom's side of the family. When I finally figured out how to navigate the list I realized that the other two matches were as well. None had a family tree on Ancestry. So I messaged all three the following "form letter":

HiMy name is Bill West and according to my Ancestry DNA test results we could be 2nd or 3rd cousins.My Dad was Floyd West Jr, son of Floyd West Sr & Cora Bertha Barker. He was born in Bethel, Me.My Mom was Anna M. White, daughter of Edward F. White & Agnes McFarland and she was born in Boston, Ma.You can view my tree at https://www.ancestry.com/family-tree/tree/1298720/familyMsg me back if any of this rings a bell. I'll be glad to share information with you.Bill West

I haven't heard back yet from any of the three, but they haven't logged into Ancestry since I messaged them.Two haven't logged in for over six months. This looks like it will be a long wait.

But I had a happier result on the other side of the family. I was looking through the rest of the list and saw a 4th cousin who had a profile photo that looked of a person who looked like my Dad's Mom. I sent her the "form letter" and got a quick answer. Our DNA connection was not through my grandmother. It was from my 3x great grandfather, the Elusive John Cutter West.

Monday, July 24, 2017

Sarah (Farnham/Farnum)Abbott was the granddaughter of my 10x great grandfather and immigrant ancestor Ralph Farnham/Farnum of Andover, Ma. The reliable William Richard Cutter had this to say about him in one of his genealogical collections:

(I) Ralph Farnham, immigrant ancestor, was born in England in 1603. He came with his wife Alice from London in the brig “James”, sailing from Southampton, April 6, 1635. He gave his age as thirty-two, and his wife’s as twenty-eight and they had with them three young children, Mary, Thomas and Ralph. He was a barber by trade but followed husbandry after coming to New England. He settled first in Ipswich, of which he was proprietor in 1639. He settled finally in Andover, Massachusetts. He died January 5, 1692-93, and the inventory of his estate is dated March 29, 1693. Children: 1. Mary, born 1628, resided in Andover, where she died February 3, 1714; married Daniel Poor, of Andover, in Boston, October 20, 1650. 2. Thomas, mentioned below. 3. Ralph, born 1633, died January 8, 1691-92; married Elizabeth Holt, of Andover, October 26, 1658, she died October 14, 1710. 4. Sarah, born at Andover, married John Abbot, April 16, 1658; he was the ancestor of the most prominent Abbots in America. 5. John, born 1640.-p319

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Friday, July 21, 2017

Going back up the family tree to the ancestors of the Abbott wives, we start with George Abbott's
father in law William Chandler. Luckily I found n family genealogy one written by George
Chandler in 1883. The biography of William Chandler includes a rather convoluted theory about
the possible identity of William's wife Annis:

WILLIAM1 CHANDLER and Annis his wife settled, 1637, in Roxbury, Mass. They brought with them four children. Their youngest, Sarah, is the only one whose birth is recorded in this country. In the history of Roxbury it is stated that, " It has been remarked that no people can boast of more honorable descent than are those of Massachusetts;" and that, "The Roxbury people were the best that came" from England.

What Annis's surname was before marriage does not clearly appear. Dea. George Alcock, of Roxbury, in his will of 1640, said: "To our brother Edward Porter 20 bushels of Indian Corne, and to our brother Chandler the Monye he oweth me" "for half the fence betwixt him and me." "My brother Mr. Hooker" to be "overseer." Mrs. Alcock was sister of Rev. Thos. Hooker. She died in Roxbury. Edward Porter married a sister of Dea. George Alcock. Gov. Dudley, in a letter to Lady Lincoln, says, "Mrs. Alcock, sister to Mr.Hooker." Hence it may well be supposed that " Annis "*was a sister of Dea. George Alcock.Annis Chandler was admitted to the church in Roxbury "at the same time her husband William Chandler was."The Roxbury Records, as reprinted in the "Norfolk County Journal," say: "William Chandler came to N. E. about the yearr 1637. He brought 4 small children: Thomas, Hannah, John, William; his 5th child Sarah was born here; he lived a very religious and godly life among us, and fell into a Consumption to which he had, a long time, been inclined; he lay near a yeare sick, in all which time his faith, patience & Godliness & Contentation So Shined that Christ was much glorified in him—he was a man of Weake parts but Excellent faith and holiness; he was a Very thankful man, and much magnified God's goodness. He was poor, but God prepared the hearts of his people to him that he never wanted that which was (at least in his Esteem) Very plentiful and Comfortable to him —he died about the____ in the yeare 1641, and left a Sweet memory and Savor behind him."The Eliot Church Records say, " William Chandler, a Christian. Godly brother, died of a Consumption month 11, day 26, 1641, and was buried 1!< (11) 1641, in Roxbury." The children of William Chandler were:2. i. Hannah, b. about 1629; m. first, "12 Dec. 1046," say the Eliot Church Records of Roxbury, in the hand writing of John Eliot the apostle, "George Abbot;" second, 1690, Rev. Francis Dane, of Andover.3. ii. Thomas, b. 1630; ra. Hannah Brewer.4. iii. William; m. first. Aug. 18 (or 3, another record says), 1658, Mary Dane, of Ipswich; second, 8 Oct. 1679, Bridget Henchman, widow of James Richardson, by " Sam'l Adams, commissioner."5. iv. John; m. "ffeb. 16, 1658," Elizabeth Douglas.6. v. Sarah, b." Roxbury; m. first, 4 Nov. 1659, William Cleaves; second, Wilson ; third, 11 Oct. 1688, Eph. Stephens ; fourth, Allen.pp2-4

Wednesday, July 19, 2017

5x great grandfather Jonathan Abbott 3rd was born on 29 Aug 1740 in Andover, Ma. He married
his cousin Mehitable Abbott, (daughter of Ephraim Abbott but I don't know yet what degree cousin she was to Jonathan.) in 1764. After she died on 1 Jan. 1777, he married another cousin Dorcas Abbott (daughter of Stephen Abbott) on 17Dec 1778. She died on . 3 Mar. 1844.

Jonathan had nine children, six with Mehitable, three with Dorcas, all of whom were born at Andover, Ma.

Of the six older children, four moved to Maine: Mehitable, Zerviah, Hannah and Jonathan.

Jonathan was a Revolutionary War veteran but trying to nail down exactly where he served is made difficult by him being one of several Jonathan Abbotts from Andover who served.

He seems to have been well off, though. He died in Andover on 26Dec 1821 leaviing a will in which he left $300 dollars to each of his daughters and thirty silver teaspoons which were to be divided equally among them.He left all his clothes to oldest son Jonathan and his real estate to younger son Stephen.

By this time, my 4x great grandmother Zerviah(Abbott) Ellingwood had been married over thirty years in Maine.

Monday, July 17, 2017

UPDATE: I have broken down my John Cutter West brickwall. Details to follow in a later post.

Late Saturday afternoon I glanced at my email and found my Ancestry DNA test results were in! This was an early and pleasant surprise because Ancestry had said it would be 6-8 weeks before I'd see them and here they were in 4 weeks.

So I opened the email, hit the link to see my results....and found my self slightly confused and mystified.

Low confidence:
1% Africa North
3% Italy/Greece
2% Great Britain
2% Europe East
2% Europe West.
Less than 1% European Jew
Less than 1% Caucasus

It's those small amounts of exotic (for me) genes that have m emystified : North African, Italy/Greece, Europe East, Europe West, Caucasus. Did I have Crusader ancestors who brought home wives from the wars or did some Vikings with wives from their travels settle among the Irish?

More bits of information from the test results:

I have 449 DNA matches who are 4th cousins or closer, and 138 of them with share hints I have.

My total DNA matches when more distant cousins are factored in are 19,300!

As Ancestry finds more matches those numbers will go up.

The frustrating part is the number of people I have matches with who don't have family trees on Ancestry so I can see how we match up. I don't understand why people would do that. Are they only interested in their ethnic origins but not in their ancestors? It's like buying a sports car but never driving it!

Ah well!

I'm in the early stages of exploring all this. I'll be blogging more about it as I go along.

Friday, July 14, 2017

My 6x great grandfather Jonathan Abbott Jr. was born in Andover, Ma on 14Dec 1714 and married Martha Lovejoy there on 8 Oct 1739. They had three children there, all of whom are mentioned
in Jonathan's will:

There may have been a fourth child, Nathan, but I have found no record of his birth or any other
vital record for him.

Notice the sons married Lovejoy and Abbott cousins. It happened many times among George Abbott's descendants.In fact, Jonathan Jr.'s second wife was another cousin, Mary Abbott.

Jonathan Jr died on 31May 1794 and I found his will at AmericanAncestor.org There's two copies
of his will, worded exactly the same, but one is clearly a better handwritten copy of the orginal. I'll
be posting them here once I've transcribed them.

Sunday, July 09, 2017

33 MAPS Find out what Dublin was like when your ancestors walked its streets. Explore these large-scale government maps and uncover the locations of all the streets, buildings, gardens, lanes, barracks, hospitals, churches that made up the city at the start of the Great Famine. SEARCH THESE RECORDS »

68 MAPSExplore historic maps that were created to assist the English in the plantation of Ireland during the reigns of Elizabeth I and James I. The maps are beautifully decorated and were used to inform settlers of the locations of rivers, bogs, fortifications and harbours. They also detail the names of the numerous Gaelic clans and the lands they owned.SEARCH THESE RECORDS »

OVER 130,000 RECORDS Does your family tree have roots in 16th century Wiltshire? Search for your ancestor in this free index to discover their occupation, if they left a will and when they left it, along with the archive reference number needed to order the original image.SEARCH THESE RECORDS »

OVER 800 PAGESExplore PDF records containing thousands of names to find out if your London ancestors were married by licence. Discover their occupation, marital status, father’s name, previous spouse’s name (if widowed) and corresponding details for their spouse.SEARCH THESE RECORDS »

Saturday, July 01, 2017

Do you think one of your ancestors may have fought in the Revolutionary War? You can find out free for the next two weeks as the Fold3 website is giving researchers free access to their Revolutionary War collections. I received an email from them this morning with the details. Be sure to read the terms and conditions at the bottom of the notice:

Access Revolutionary War Records for Free*

Do you have ancestors who fought in the Revolutionary War? Now is the perfect time to learn more about them, as Fold3 is giving free access* to our Revolutionary War Collection July 1–15.

There are 20+ titles in our Revolutionary War Collection. Popular ones include:

Revolutionary War PensionsThe records in this collection include entire pension files for soldiers and sailors who served in the Revolutionary War. Unlike selected records, which were typically chosen subjectively for genealogical content, these records reveal more details about each veteran's history and service, as well as more information about his family, state of health, and life after the war. Every name mentioned in the pensions has been indexed, not just the soldier’s name, which makes finding people even easier.

Revolutionary War Service RecordsThese are compiled service records for the regular soldiers of the Continental Army, and for the militia, volunteers, and others who served with them. The records are arranged under the designation "Continental Troops" or a state name, then by organization, and then alphabetically by a soldier's surname. Records consist of card abstracts of entries relating to each soldier from original records. Also included are regimental lists including muster rolls, pay lists, and caption cards.

Revolutionary War RollsThe primary function of the many Revolutionary War rolls maintained by the American Army was to provide basic information about the identities, numbers, condition, equipage, and pay status of the men and units that comprised the Army in order to facilitate administrative control. Browse these rolls by state and name of organization (regiment, battalion, guard, company, etc.). Find names of soldiers with the help of annotations supplied by other Fold3 users and feel free to add your own. Thousands of records from 138 rolls of microfilm provide names and details about the men who fought for independence.

Final Payment Vouchers Index for Military Pensions, 1818–1864
Pension payment records are not typically found in pension application files. These cards were created as an index for the final payments made to either the veteran or his widow. They provide additional details on where a family may have moved in the early- to mid-19th century, death dates of veterans, widows, or dependent children, and sometimes the maiden name of a widow.

Get started searching or browsing the Revolutionary War Collection on Fold3!.

*Access to the records in the featured collections will be free until July 15, 2017 at 11:59 p.m. MT. Free access requires registration for a free Fold3 account. After the free access period ends, you will only be able to view the records in the featured collections using a paid Fold3 membership.